Former US M1 helmet

[Michtag]

Hi all,
some time ago I received this helmet as a gift from a familty friend. She bought it in a flea/antiques market, in Italy (and I have no idea how much she paid for it) and later just gve it to me, without really knowing what it was.

Shell is a late WW2 M1, front seam, swivel bales, however paint is a light green that I believe could show reconditioning in the 1950-60s. Chinstrap has T1 clamps and fastener, but looks very new compared to the shell.

All good to here, however what puzzles me is the "thing" at the front. Initially I thought this could be remains of soldering material, but it looks more like very thick paint or similar paterial painted white.

Is this rank insignia? Looking around I have seen French M1s with similar insignia, but it was usually just painted (and bigger).
Another possibility is that is it Korean (ROK) Army: this could be a Sergeant rank as used through the 1980s with old US stock.

Can anybody shed any light?
Cheers
Michele

[JesperS]

Hmmmm ... looks to me like it's been repainted several times. First a dark green paint that shows sign of running and then spray painted with a lighter green. It does look like something has been stuck to the front of the helmet. It looks way too sloppily done to be rank markings.
It looks like the light green paint isn't covering the whole helmet - Is that right?

/Jesper

[bourguignotte]

Hi
Strange indeed. Chinstrap looks nealy new compare to the helmet itself
If it was to be a French Rank it would be "Colonel". A rather hight rank and we could then expect more car in the drawing of the rank.

Bruno

[Michtag]

I am not sure, I can see only one overpainted layer (the light green) which is flaking and missing at the front, maybe because that odd emblem (if it is an emblem....or maybe the real emblem is actually missing and that's what's left) has been soldered/attached on...

[Michtag]

I agree, the chinstrap is a later addition and not consistent with the overall use of the helmet. And I also agree that a Colonel would probably have rank insignia applied properly....

Many thanks
Michele

[Apache8]

I think this helmet may have been in use with the Peruvian military as the color and the flat sheet metal J hook seem constant with the examples I've seen, also the US started selling off some of their older M1's to Peru in the 1950's and continued throughout the cold war, which makes sense considering the WW2 vintage of yours.

If it is Peruvian and the markings are a rank insignia then it appears that this would have belonged to a Lieutenant Colonel.

Here's links to a couple sites that talk more about these helmets
Peru M1 - Brendon's Helmets
World War Helmets - Casque M-1 reconditionne

Hope this was able to help shed some light,
Apache8